Sunday October 3
*
A glimpse
forth up
to the leading light of my long day
slight gentle beautiful determined bright one
patiently making her way
she firmly alone firmly herself
to quietly remind me
that not so far away
for she I we two
our warm and bright
future day
and to her then to say to tell
of a warm and quiet place
in the valley of Tawu
upon the Zhe chu
Where white roofed houses
sit beneath the mountain light
with beams of warm painted red
their roofs flat
for the mountain storms
come not here with their great
cascading white burden
of glittering snow
Once refugees from an ancient kingdom
struggled to this place
for the Mongol armies of Genghiz Qan
swept down upon their citadel
and Xixia of Minyak
became a smouldering crumbled ruin
it’s inhabitants scattered as barley chaff
threshed into the wind
Now all that remains
the tongue that’s spoken here
unlike anywhere else on earth
and the legend that tells
of the journey here
of those that survived
fire sword and arrow
to flee to this quiet place
the cries of their lost
still sounding in their minds
and uncried tears
still within their hearts
to arise
at moment of unexpected
remembrance
Now inhabitants here
live quiet lives
among the Chinese newly arrived
in the shadow of Nyitso Gonpa
monastery once of Gelukpa faith
not far from the great fields
of Trongmi where harvest
of gold comes from
beneath the earth
rather than from swaying stalks
waving in the wind above
As though a mountain deity
pleased with the glorious
dance arrayed upon the plain
touched the earth with gentle hand
to make it too glow here and there
in a warm and shining echo
Then to Mejesumdo
with it’s glorious forests of towering green
and quiet open places looking out
over the shining water of the Zhe chu
and far to the southeast beyond
Look beautiful one
Ya gi a mountain rises
Zhara Latse is it’s name
and glinting upon it’s rocky flanks
Zhara Yutso lake shimmers
just visible to our sight
to there we’ll make our way
for now we’ll rest here
and stir our tsampah
into our butter tea
and drinking there
contentedly look out upon
great mountain blue infinity
All this not so wonderful
to my straining eyes
as your gentle serious smile
as beautiful as the rainbow
on a stormy day
with determined beauty
and swift uplifted grace
that endures with patient dignity
this that I see in you
beneath the open sky
on this mid afternoon
of our fall of working and waiting
Lotus blossoms rest
upon the window sill
and so we wait
two as one
we our effort
real and lasting
slight gentle
beautiful one
September 27
* courtesy of A Luminous Diamond (Bright) Crystal Show productions.
reference material for the poem is courtesy of the Footprint Tibet handbook by Gyurme Dorje.